Time Machine has not been backing up Zotero?

ruthjlee
I have been using Time Machine backups for a long time, and it appears to have been backing up everything but Zotero Standalone (which I use in Chrome, with the Chrome app). This is now a big problem, as I just had to restore my system manually and had assumed the backup done minutes prior would have my full Zotero library in it. A search on my Time Machine backup for 'zotero' and 'sqlite' turns up nothing. I hadn't synced to Zotero for Firefox for a very long time, so that version is very out of date.

- am I looking for the wrong thing? Should I be looking somewhere in Chrome?
- If not, why would Time Machine exclude Zotero?
- any suggestions for next things to try?

Thanks!
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  • ruthjlee
    Just to note - I had not excluded any files from the backup. Just told it to back up the entire HD.
  • adamsmith
    am I looking for the wrong thing? Should I be looking somewhere in Chrome?
    no, Zotero has nothing to do with Chrome, the Chrome app is only a small tool to allow import from Chrome to Standalone.
    If not, why would Time Machine exclude Zotero?
    no reason, really.
    any suggestions for next things to try?
    Have you looked at the default paths? a regular search may not find zotero.sqlite, I don't know Mac well enough, but Dan would be able to say.
  • ruthjlee
    Ah, sorry! I thought I had, but I was looking along the wrong path. Now I see Zotero in the backup, but I'm not sure which sqlite file I need. I thought I needed 'zotero.sqlite' but all the sqlite files I have are:

    - chromeappsstore.sqlite
    - content-prefs.sqlite
    - cookies.sqlite
    - downloads.sqlite
    - extensions.sqlite
    - formhistory.sqlite
    - netpredictions.sqlite
    - permissions.sqlite
    - places.sqlite
    - signons.sqlite
    - webappsstore.sqlite

    There is also a 'storage' folder that goes: persistent-> chrome ->idb->2588645841ssegtnti.sqlite (and another folder called 2588645841ssegtnti which is empty)
  • adamsmith
    none of those .sqlites is helpful. When you say you see Zotero, what exactly are you seeing?
  • ruthjlee
    edited June 6, 2014
    In the 'user' files --> Library --> Application Support I see a folder called Zotero. Have to go now but will check back first thing tomorrow, thank you for help so far - at least something is there - fingers crossed!
  • dstillman
    edited June 6, 2014
    You're still looking in the wrong place. See here:

    https://www.zotero.org/support/zotero_data#default_locations

    (There should be a lowercase 'zotero' directory below the one you're looking at, though — you're probably looking at the Zotero Standalone profile directory, which is one level higher. This assumes you didn't first use Zotero for Firefox, in which case your data directory is likely within the Firefox profile. You want a zotero.sqlite file that's multiple megabytes and the 'storage' folder in the same directory as that file.)
  • ruthjlee
    Found it in the Firefox profile - many thanks! I didn't think to look there since I haven't used that version for a long time, but I must have used it before I used Standalone. I'll try later today to uses the zotero.sqlite and 'storage' folders there and will update.
  • ruthjlee
    Solved - thank you so much! I'll bear in mind in future that just because I mostly use Standalone, it doesn't mean that key files aren't in the Firefox profile.

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